Doomed Confessionary: Frank Lunar, helo samo & Caitlin Mkhasibe (P+A+G+E+S)
P+A+G+E+S is a three-piece atmospheric noise/doom/sludge/post-metal band from Cape Town, South Africa.
Formed in 2017, Caitlin Mkhasibe (drums), Frank Lunar (bass), and helo samo (guitar, vocals, sampling, and textural noise) have evolved from their post-rock and noise roots into a heavier, more drudging sound. »No More Can Be Done« represents the culmination of years of interrupted yet deliberate creation – its earliest riffs conceived in late 2019, with completion delayed by the pandemic until writing resumed in March 2024.
P+A+G+E+S have released their debut album »No More Can Be Done« on October 25th, 2025. A stark and slow-burning monolith, »No More Can Be Done« traverses themes of existential dread, geopolitical despair, environmental decay, and raw emotional weight, yet offers a glimmer of perseverance in a collapsing world. The album’s message is clear: take note of environmental degradation and challenge oppression by standing up for BIPOC, women, LGBTQI+, human, and animal rights.
Can you please say a few words about your band?
P+A+G+E+S (pronounced, ‘pages’) is a doom, atmospheric noise, drone, sludge punk & post-metal trio from Cape Town, South Africa, consisting of members Frank Lunar (bass), helo samo (vocals, guitar, samples) and Caitlin Mkhasibe (drums).
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
We do all of our admin and visuals under one roof (artwork, photos, videos and editing, projection for live performances, promotional and marketing material), which can get overwhelming sometimes, but this means that everything that we put out is intentional. Trying to book shows, as well as, the logistics of that and building community have also been the most challenging for us.
What can you be most proud of so far?
Recording our debut album with Simon Ratcliffe and Carl Roberts at Sound and Motion Studios, having it pressed to vinyl with help from Rouleaux van der Merwe of Permanent Record, and, working with Louise Coetzer, Oscar O’Ryan, Marcel Maassen, Abu Mohamed, Josh Botes, Tamysn Pretorius, Zandile and Zanele Salukazana on the music video for our single, »Shine On«. We also had a really good first show at District in Cape Town.
What was your biggest regret?
This would not be as much of a regret, but rather a lesson in hindsight: What we have achieved with this record, with regards to the final product, as well as its reception, was due to our intentional approach to the composing, recording, releasing and communication. The time we spent on these fundamentals lead to a more systematic and considered execution, which resulted in a clear and concise narrative embedded in the outcome. If we could travel back in time, we would pass this on to our younger ‘Morning Pages’ selves (a previous iteration of the band), to strengthen this rather than to give into impatience to put something out publicly.
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
We are proud of our »Black Room Session« at Sound & Motion Studios was our showcase performance to introduce a small group of people to what had been working on. We also had the opportunity to film it, which can be seen on our YouTube channel.
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
The lack of protest against Spotify for various reasons including, but not limited to, massive funding of AI military weapons and the poor compensation for artists’ hard work while the CEO rakes in bags of cash selling Ads (including ICE recruitment Ads) and not music. We have to relearn how to support artists as fans by buying directly from the artist, if you can, and support your local scene and artist in your area by going to shows. A good book we recommend is Mood Machine by music journalist, Liz Pelly, who has spent a decade researching and collating information from Spotify staff and musicians who have directly collaborated with Spotify. Pelly also postulates ways forward, based on interviewed music industry activists and their work.
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Sumac, Chat Pile, Primitive Man, The Body, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Sunn O))), Nadja, Thisquietarmy, Lane Shi Otayonii.
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
Don’t care about trends.
People who need to hear it will hear it.
Perfectionism can be Patriarchy’s paralyzing prison (but still do your best).
Make something.
Take your time and plan your project way in advance (the detail intensive admin side is really damn important too), be professional.
What are your guilty pleasures?
Sit and do nothing or listen to or read about paranormal stories.
Can you say something more about the current music scene in Cape Town?
Cape Town has many talented artists and the music scene is buzzing with regular shows on almost a weekly basis. Some of the bigger events organizers and promoters putting on really good shows are SENSA (Sonic Exploration Network Southern Africa), Foul Play, Planet Karavan, Bad Mood Music, Metal4Africa, Ramfest, Emalyth Events, Cape Town Metal Realm and LuvBuzz (to name a few), not forgetting to mention that there are also many independently created shows put on by musicians themselves. Sludge Underground are great documenters and interviewers of the heavy music scene.
We would like to contribute to wider visibility and representation of doom/sludge bands and, beyond specific genres, we would also like to create or see more spaces that are welcoming to alternative minorities, bipoc and people with disabilities.
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
• On the 7th of February, we will be playing our »No More Can Be Done« album release show at the Masque Theatre in Muizenberg, Cape Town. Joining us on stage will be Emmaleen Tangleweed with Lliezel Ellick and Constellatia.
• We will do a private live recorded Spinal Session at Spinal Tap Bar in Observatory, Cape Town, on 21 Feb and that should be out on the Spinal Sessions YouTube (@spinalsessions) in a few months’ time afterwards.
• On the 6th of March, we will play at Armchair Theatre in Observatory, Cape Town.
• On the 4th of April, we will play a doom themed show at District in Cape Town with Vast Vale and Constellatia (TBC).
We will announce more confirmed shows on our Instagram.
What are your plans for the future as a band?
Work towards playing more shows and reaching a wider audience to build a community around the band’s concept. Hopefully, we can release another music video, if things line up.
How can people best support your band?
You can find us on Bandcamp where you can stream our debut full length album, »No More Can Be Done«, or purchase the digital or vinyl version of our album: pagesdoom.bandcamp.com. You can follow us on Instagram. You can find our music videos and recorded live shows on YouTube.
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well